Totti: England difficult but beatable

The veteran Roma forward is wary of the threat posed by Roy Hodgson's men, but he has been impressed by what he has seen so far from the Azzurri

Francesco Totti believes that England will prove a "difficult" obstacle for Italy to overcome in Kiev on Sunday night, but the World Cup winner is confident that the Azzurri can progress to the semifinals of Euro 2012.

The Roma captain feels that Cesare Prandelli's troops deserve credit for emerging from a group containing Spain, Croatia and the Republic of Ireland, but is well aware that the going is about to get much tougher for the Nazionale.

"Italy has had a good Euros up until now," Totti told Sky Sport Italia. "It was important to get through the first round. But the knockout phase begins now and the match against England will be difficult, but Italy can do well."

Totti was speaking over the phone from Sardinia, where he is currently on holiday. However, the trequartista explained that he has been keeping himself in shape because he knows that he is in for a punishing pre-season with the Giallorossi's new coach, Zdenek Zeman, who has returned for a second spell at the Stadio Olimpico.

"Now it is all beginning again, and the training will be tough," Totti mused. "Fortunately, I know Zeman well and I know what I'm in for. So, I try to get myself ready for the start of pre-season."

Totti was capped 58 times by Italy before deciding to retire from international football after the 2006 World Cup triumph in Germany.

Messi: Barcelona made my dream come true

The Argentina star revealed that his only wish as a little boy was to become a professional player and said he will forever be grateful to the Blaugrana for making it happen

Lionel Messi has credited Barcelona for helping him realize his "dream" of becoming a professional football player.

The Argentina international joined Barca at the age of 13 and has won the Ballon d'Or three times since making his debut in 2004.

Messi says that he always dreamt of playing football at the highest level and spoke of Barcelona's importance in making that happen.

"Since I was three or four years old, I dreamt of becoming a footballer," he told Caracol TV. "I was walking around with a football and all I wanted was to play. My only thought was to become a footballer, I did not think about doing anything else. If I could not have become one, I actually do not know what I would be today.

"I do not know what Barcelona saw in me, but I will always be grateful to them for what they did and what they keep doing. At that time, I was on a very expensive medical treatment and they covered all the costs and gave me the opportunity to play.

"This was something very beautiful, because they allowed me to realize my dream."

Messi then advised young players to not drop out of school and revealed the advice that his parents used to give him when he was a child.

"When I was a kid, I did not like to study much and they insisted that I kept studying because it was important," the Argentine explained. "Now, I see that they were right, that it is good that one has studied. You never know what could happen in football.

"Every kid dreams of playing in the Primera Division, but not everyone can make it, so studying could be very important."